Chapter 11 - You're Very Good at Your Job
Remus got up before Regulus the next morning. He had learned that before a shoot the model usually got quite stressed so today Remus wanted to do what he could to make things easier for him.
Regulus woke to the smell of food, and found the table on the balcony arranged like yesterday morning. "You ordered breakfast?"
"I did. I hope you don't mind. I thought it were nice and easy for you to wake up to a lovely breakfast and then a shower after."
"Of course I don't mind!" Regulus smiled and put on a bathrobe before going out to sit down at the table with Remus.
It was nice sitting there in the morning sun sharing breakfast, and after last night's talk, Remus felt so much better. "What do you want to do after the shoot today?"
"If I'm not too tired we can go out to eat," replied Regulus, slicing the peel off a piece of melon. "Otherwise we can just order room service."
o0o0o
"You look sexy in that tank-top. Remember sunscreen so you don't burn your shoulders, darling" Regulus said before leaving Remus sitting on a sun bed with a handful of other VIPs - most of them girlfriends of the other models, all wearing bikinis and looking gorgeous. "Remus has very delicate skin, so he's careful with the sun," Regulus explained to the girls, hoping this would keep them from wondering why he didn't go topless.
"We will make sure he remembers," said one of the girls, peaking over her sunglasses.
"Yes, we can't have you all burned," smiled another at Remus.
Regulus leaned down to plant a wet kiss on Remus' lips before leaving for the dressing room.
There were five models (all supermodels) from five countries (Spain, France, Italy, USA and the UK). Besides being of different nationalities, the concept was that the models were of different type. Regulus was by far the slenderest, while the others were more muscular. The five models also had different hair styles and -colours.
The girlfriends all spoke English; at least well enough to communicate with each other. Remus felt comfortable with the girls. They were nice and treated him well, telling him stories about how their boyfriends acted at home, and they were very interested in knowing where he and Regulus had met and how he was in private. Remus was very discreet with what he told them but still acted like the loving boyfriend and told little stories so nothing seemed fake.
"I did not know Regulus was bisexual," said the French girl. "I met him before where he had girlfriends with him. "He dated one of my friends, even." (She, like two of the other girlfriends, was a model herself).
"He's had a few flings with boys but none as serious as me. I didn't even know he were a model when I met him."
"Really?" said the American. "You can't have been surprised, though? He's got the most beautiful face I've ever seen. Don't tell Adam I said that!" she added, grinning. "He'll just get jealous."
"He's proper beautiful, aye, and I would be lying if I said I didn't notice," Remus smiled and sipped at a cold drink he had been handed by someone from the staff. When people praised Regulus like that Remus felt proud that he was his boyfriend – even though he wasn't really.
They started with a group shot of the five models perched together on some decorative rock formations with the sea in the background. Remus liked the concept of variety a lot - it looked like a piece of art. The Spaniard was dark-tanned, had short-cropped hair and a razor-sharp jawline. The American had a classic viking-look: pale and long blond hair and a short scruffy beard. The Frenchman (clearly of African descent) was a very deep black, muscular with a perfect 8-pack, and a shaved head. He was placed next to the American - beautifully accentuating the stark contrast. The brown-haired Italian looked like he had just stepped out of his Armani suit and put down his briefcase. He had a chic haircut and a trimmed beard. And then there was Regulus… In Remus' eyes he was in a league of his own. The others might be sexy, but Regulus was beautiful. Remus couldn't take his eyes off his smooth skinned slender body, perfect face framed by silky raven hair, and most of all those haunting dark grey eyes.
"Oh, I love this designer!" sighed the Italian girl. "He brilliante. I hope he do the same concept with the women's collezione. "I, really love be in it!"
Regulus was up for the first solo-shoot, and when he was done he came over to sit with Remus for a bit, still in the square-cut trunks he had been wearing for the shoot. He had barely sat down before an assistant handed him a tall glass of ice water.
"You looked grand up there," Remus smiled, letting a hand rest on his thigh.
"Thank you. It's so bloody hot in the sun," said Regulus, wiping his face with a small towel handed to him by the assistant.
"Oh, Regulus, you boyfriend is such a sweetheart!" beamed the American girl. "He's been entertaining us chicks and patiently listening to all our gossip!"
"Don't be too rough on him, he's too nice to tell you to back off," replied Regulus.
"It's fine, luv," Remus smiled and kissed his cheek. "These lovely ladies have been very good to me."
"You two are so sweet," the French girl commented. "And you seem a lot happier, Regulus, if you don't mind me saying."
"Really?" Regulus looked at her in surprise. "Well, makes sense. Remus is the best thing that happened to me in a long time."
o0o0o
They returned to the hotel at seven o'clock. "Would you still prefer to go out to eat?" Regulus asked as he unlocked the door to their room.
"If you're not too tired," Remus smiled. "If you'd rather stay in, then I'm fine with that."
"It wasn't as late as I had expected, so I think I'm good. If you go ahead and shower first, I'll just lie down for a bit."
After his shower, Remus decided to exit the bathroom only wearing a towel around the waist, and it gave him quite a confidence boost seeing Regulus' eyes scanning his body with unmistakable interest. When Regulus disappeared into the bathroom, Remus went through his suitcase to find something nice to wear. He came across the trousers that Emmeline had bought him. Feeling confident still, he decided to go with those and a blue dress-shirt, hoping that Regulus would like his look.
Remus' new friend had not been wrong. The second Regulus emerged from the bathroom his eyes fell on Remus' new trousers. The escort was standing with his back turned, so Regulus got a nice view of the best part of said trousers. Remus turned around and smiled at the model, not failing to notice where his gaze had been.
Regulus swallowed a lump. "You look great in that... those trousers. I haven't seen you in them before. Did Lily get those for you?"
"No, actually Emmeline treated me to them," Remus said. "I tried to tell her no but she insisted since she thought they looked proper good on me."
Regulus nodded, still looking at Remus' trousers. "That figures. She's eerily observant and she knows me well. And she has an excellent eye for clothes. She really ought to become a designer - I've told her that more than once. Perhaps she will when she gets too old for modelling."
o0o0o
They ended up spending two hours at a lovely restaurant by the beach. Afterwards, Remus suggested they walk back to the hotel along the waterfront, watching the gentle waves wash up on the beach and listen to music and laughter coming from various bars. Most people they passed didn't seem to care or notice that they were holding hands (of course many were looking at them, but that was mainly girls staring at Regulus), but Regulus did notice a few who pulled a disgusted face or threw a comment to those they were walking with. It did make him slightly uncomfortable but he didn't let go of Remus' hand. Remus didn't seem to care at all. Regulus figured he was used to it.
When they got back to the hotel, Remus stopped at the entrance, holding Regulus back as well. "I feel like going for a swim."
"What?" said Regulus in surprise. "Now? In the pool?"
"Aye. Since I missed out on it yesterday, I'd like to go now, If you're up for it."
"Why not? There's light down there. But... are you sure you feel comfortable topless? Not because of me, but I thought you didn't like people seeing it."
"As long as you're fine with it I don't care," Remus smiled. "And I think most people are in their rooms now so we got the area to ourselves. It's quite late, innit?"
They quickly changed into trunks and rushed down to the pool, Regulus immediately jumping in at the deep end, pulling Remus with him by the hand.
Remus laughed as his head popped up from the water. He made his way over to Regulus, treading water in front of him.
"Hi," grinned Regulus, pushing Remus' fringe aside, since it was long enough to cover his eyes when wet. "You look like a sheepdog," he laughed.
"You find me adorable, then?" Remus asked, fluttering his lashes and putting his hands on Regulus' waist.
"Doesn't everybody?" said Regulus and pulled him closer. "But you kiss better than a dog."
"I sure hope so," said Remus and leaned in to demonstrate it.
"Are you still looking forward to next month when our contract is up?" Regulus asked when they broke the kiss.
"No," Remus said and rested his forehead against Regulus'. "Are you?" he asked, letting his fingers caress Regulus' back. "You've been proper tired of me."
"I've become used to you and your silly accent," teased Regulus. "Besides, you're not so irritating any longer."
"I'm not?" said Remus, feigning shocked surprise.
Regulus laughed but then got serious. "You're not going back to escorting when you're done here, are you? Yesterday you said you took this job so you could get out."
"That's the plan, aye. I never told you why I started escorting in the first place, did I?"
Regulus shook his head.
"I started college but then me mam got ill. Pancreatic cancer." Remus sighed. "I quit school so I could take care of her. I also needed to get a job so we could pay our bills, now that Mam couldn't work any longer. I had to find a way to make good money while working as few hours as possible, so I could be with her as much as I could. And when she died, I went sort of numb and just stayed in the job because that's what I knew." Remus looked down at his hands (which Regulus had taken) as he spoke. "I never told Mam what sort of job I had, because I knew how upset it would've made her."
"Oh..." said Regulus. "That makes sense. I'm sorry about your mother. You don't regret it, then?"
"No, I don't. I would make the same choice again if I could go back in time. Every extra hour with her was precious."
"You must have really loved her," said Regulus in a soft voice. "Where was your father in all this? Couldn't he help support you?"
"I haven't seen me father since I were little so it's only been me and Mam, really. No other family either."
"I'm sorry, Remus," said Regulus, feeling a little bad about never having considered that Remus might have started escorting because of a difficult situation. "I guess I just thought you liked the job. The money, the attention, or something. In truth I never thought much about it at all. Well, I did consider drugs, because that's the most common reason for prostitution, isn't it? But Lily would never have hired a junkie, and I could tell that you weren't one. I've been around plenty to know how to spot them. There's a lot of drugs in the celebrity world."
Remus nodded. "It's true that most street prostitutes do it to support a drug habit, but escorts do it for many different reasons. But I don't hold it against you, not knowing how things are."
"No, you should hold it against me. I haven't been treating you with respect."
"You can give me a kiss and I'll forgive you," Remus smiled, feeling his whole body warm up at the sincere apology.
Regulus did and then suggested they swim a few laps and then go up, before they got too cold.
o0o0o
They put on their bathrobes and hurried up to their hotel room.
"You want a hot shower to warm up before going to bed so you don't get sick?" Remus asked as he closed and locked the door behind them.
"You go first," said Regulus. "But hurry. I'm a bit cold."
When Regulus was done in the bathroom he found Remus already in bed; with a book, as usual. "You really love reading, yeah?" said Regulus, crawling under the covers.
"I do," Remus smiled. "It helps me unwind." Seeing the other boy yawn, he put down the book and turned off the light, making himself comfortable, cuddled up to Regulus.
But Regulus couldn't fall asleep. He could only focus on how warm Remus was, how good he smelled. Lying with his ear against Remus' chest, he could hear his heart thumping away, and it was clear that the escort was also far from asleep. Regulus turned his head a little and pressed his lips to the collarbone. He heard Remus let out a soft gasp.
Remus hummed and a small smile tugged at his lip as he let a hand run slowly up and down Regulus' back, enjoying the soft kisses that were so gently placed on his skin.
More encouraged, Regulus slowly kissed his way up Remus' neck to his mouth, licking at the lips to coax him into letting him deepen the kiss.
Remus was a little surprised at the very intimate gesture but he welcomed it, opening his mouth to meet Regulus' tongue, his hand now placed on the model's neck, fingers gently massaging the hairline.
Regulus caressed Remus' stomach while the kiss grew more heated, but he suddenly pulled back a little. He didn't want Remus to go along with this just because Regulus wanted it, so he hesitated, waiting for Remus to make the next move or choose to not go any further.
Remus looked up at him with half-lidded eyes before gently pulling him down for another kiss and moving his free hand down Regulus' back, hesitating right above his bottom to see if Regulus would push his hand away, but as it seemed he didn't intend to, Remus ran it over the firm buttocks.
Regulus still wasn't sure what to do with himself, so he lay down on his side, not breaking the kiss and letting out a soft moan to signal to Remus that he liked being touched.
"Lie on top of me," Remus asked softly.
A little awkwardly Regulus moved in over Remus, Remus guiding him to swing a leg over so he was straddling him.
"I like this view," Remus smiled, looking up at the model.
Regulus felt a mass of butterflies doing loops in his stomach, but when a warm hand slipped up under the back of his shirt and another hooked behind his head, pulling his face down, he got lost in the sensation of the wet hot mouth and forgot about being nervous. He suddenly sat up so he could pull his T-shirt over his head. Looking down at Remus, he toyed with the hem of his shirt, his eyes asking permission to let him push it up.
Remus nodded. "Go ahead, luv."
Regulus slowly pushed up the thin fabric. He had seen and touched the escort's chest several times by now - lastly just out in the pool - but this time it was more special. Intimate. Remus reached up his arms to let Regulus pull the shirt over his head and toss it aside. Then he pulled the model back down, unable to get enough of kissing him.
"Remus, I..." Regulus said, blushing a bit, feeling how excited Remus was getting, and sure that the escort felt his arousal in return. "I want..." he said, not knowing exactly what he wanted, just that he wanted more.
"I know," Remus whispered, and without breaking the kiss he gently rolled them over so he was on top. He took things slowly, feeling like he could continue kissing the young man forever.
Regulus felt his heart pick up speed, hammering against his ribs in excitement as he felt the weight on him. "Remus," he moaned into his mouth. "I want more. Show me."
And then Remus' hands were on him. Regulus closed his eyes, wishing he would never stop. Never stop touching him, kissing him, giving him pleasure. For a moment, though, Remus did stop and Regulus was about to whine until he realised that it was only in order to rid them both of their underwear. Regulus glanced a shyly at the naked body. Of course he had seen other naked men before, but never in an intimate situation such as this.
Remus smiled encouragingly at him, a hand caressing his stomach to make him relax and feel comfortable. "Tell me if it gets to be too much," he said, looking at him seriously before dipping down to kiss his neck. As Regulus just moaned in response, Remus finally let his hand travel further down.
The nerves and insecurity soon melted away. Regulus surrendered the reins to Remus, feeling completely safe in his hands. He followed his every lead willingly, letting him do to him what he wanted (and enjoying it immensely too), tried to copy him the best he could and follow gentle instructions.
Remus was completely lost in the feeling of Regulus. It had been so long since he had had sex with someone he had feelings for, and Regulus was amazing. His inexperience didn't matter; in fact it almost made the experience better, because it felt so authentic. For many weeks they had been playing pretend – but this was real.
o0o0o
The sun was high in the sky when Regulus awoke. He untangled himself carefully from Remus enough so he could take a look at his cell phone on the bedside table. He was a little surprised to see that it was past twelve; but then again - they had spent most of the night exploring each other. He wasn't sure how long, but definitely hours. They had taken a break a few times but then been at it again until the first light of morning had begun seeping through the venetian blinds. Regulus watched Remus, who was still sleeping. He looked so innocent, so peaceful, but Regulus couldn't help himself disturbing him with a kiss.
"Mm..." Remus hummed as a smile pulled at the corners of his lip, his eyes still closed. He was tired after last night but still managed to let his hand run up and down Regulus' back as the other boy kissed him. "Morning," he mumbled.
"Sorry to wake you," said Regulus when he broke the kiss. "Couldn't help it..."
"Oh, I don't mind being woken up by you," Remus said and opened his eyes a bit. "I couldn't think of a better way to wake up, actually."
They lay cuddling for a while until Regulus said, "Last night... I need to know... You didn't... Did you see it as your job? I mean, did you do it because I wanted to?" He lay, holding his breath waiting for Remus' answer.
"No," Remus said while caressing Regulus' hip with his fingers. "I didn't see it as me job. I did it because I wanted to and after making sure that's what you wanted as well." He was quiet for a while, thinking. He didn't want Regulus to think that he was just another client to him. "You make me feel normal," he then said.
"Oh," sighed Regulus in relief. "Good. I guess I should have asked before we started, but I didn't think of it at all until now. I couldn't really think of anything else than how good it felt."
"I'm glad I didn't disappoint," Remus smiled and kissed his hair. "You were proper amazing."
"I doubt I was that amazing," mumbled Regulus. "I've never done anything like that before. Not with a bloke. But I'm sure you could tell."
"Well, I enjoyed it very much," Remus smiled. "And I don't mind that you're inexperienced. Would be my pleasure to show you some more things."
Regulus felt himself blush and buried his face in the pillow. "Yeah... you could show me some more things. You're very good at your job. I mean –" he said, quickly looking up. "I didn't mean that it was work last night, but you're very good at what you do. You made it feel so easy and natural for me."
Remus leaned forward and placed a gentle kiss on his lips before assuring him that what he said was okay.
"How long have you wanted me?" Regulus asked curiously a bit later.
"A few weeks," Remus admitted. "I tried to push it aside since you didn't seem to be interested and I didn't want to complicate things for us any further. You actually seemed to hate me for quite a bit."
"I reckon I did a little bit at first. No, I didn't hate you - I hated that I was forced to play that charade. And you were so annoying sometimes. And I know you did it on purpose." Regulus let his fingers walk around on Remus' stomach as if they were legs out taking a stroll. "Doesn't excuse me being so nasty to you like I was, though. I'm sorry."
They finally pulled themselves out of bed and took lunch on the balcony after showering. "Lazing by the pool for the rest of the day, then?" suggested Regulus as they ate.
Remus nodded while sipping at his fresh orange juice. "How much more work do you have to do here?"
"Just one more shoot tomorrow. And then there's a VIP party in the evening. Should be okay fun. Pool party, I think. And lots of booze, if you're into that."
"I'll go with you, of course, maybe get you drunk and then be a proper gentleman and escort you back to bed," he winked.
Regulus raised an eyebrow, feeling his cheeks heat up a bit. "Really? You'll show me some new tricks, then?"
"No, no, I'll just put you to bed like the gentleman I am," Remus said and put a hand to his chest as if to swear on his life. "Make sure you get your well-deserved rest."
"Well, I'm getting to rest all day today."
"Oh, so you don't need me to tuck you in tonight, then?"
"Well, we've been sharing a bed for the past five weeks, so why stop now?"
"That's true," Remus nodded and tapped his chin. "Also, we don't want you to get cold at night."
"Exactly."